Just placed my first order with MySpiceSage.  Cart was over $100, but the 15% discount code (NRASHOW15), brought it down to “only” $88:  Their assortment of spices and herbs is frightening to my wallet.  But I did get some nice freebies (one was a 16 oz bag of cinnamon!) and shipping is always free. Since they offer a 100% guarantee, you can return or exchange anything – they even pay for return shipping.

MySpiceSage lets you search spice, by cuisine, taste or popularity.  I like the huge variety of “ethnic” spices that you’d normally have to drive all over to find.  I’m very interested in Indian cuisine (especially using a slow cooker), so the masala blends are definitely going on a future shopping list …’cause i still have to replace my pre-flood cooker…sigh

Side job is wrestling alligators…

Spent Sunday and today at the National Restaurant Show at McCormick Place.  It’s a great black hole of food and equipment, some of which is awesome and some is just…awe, what the heck is that for?

Couple of places got a a second look, among them MySpiceSage, for spices, herbs, teas, etc. at really, really good prices.  Probably the best part is they offer free shipping with no minimums and every order gets a one ounce freebie of your choice!  They offer a 100% guarantee so you can return or exchange your order – they’ll even pay for the return shipping.

MySpiceSage was offering a 15% discount with promo code NRASHOW15, and they’ve agreed to extend it to all you non-attendees.  cool beans, huh?  You can search by spice, by cuisine, taste or popularity.  What I like is the huge variety of “ethnic” spices that you’d normally have to drive around to find.  I’m very interested in Indian cuisine (especially using a slow cooker), so the masala blends are definitely going on my shopping list.

and no, they are not paying me squat for this post, I just think it’s a great deal for all of us!

In theory, he machines are wonderful – the reality is somewhat different.  Apparently the consumer is too stupid to figure out the proper water level and needs this machine to handle all that complicated stuff.  There is no override feature, so you’re stuck.  Unless you bought the stupid piece of sh*** recently enough to return.  which I did.  today.  I found one friggin’ non-he machine in the entire store.  This one has a green-saver space on the dial which will never be used.

he machines calculate the amount of water based on the weight of the load.  Again, theoretically this might work, but if you are washing bulky, lightweight items, your smart machine (this is sarcasm, folks) assumes you have a small load and gives you less liquid than my dog uses to mark his territory.  So you have dog rugs go in dirty and come out 53 minutes later (under normal cycle) just as nasty.

Just when you think you know someone…

I don’t think you can overestimate the comfort we get from just being able to putter around our kitchen.  It’s not just the destruction of a stockpile that prevents family meals, but practical considerations, like where do we eat when the dining room is still covered in stacks of inserts (need another couple of totes)?  So last night I attempted to restore sanity and threw together a little one-dish meal.

One bag of frozen chicken breasts, liberated from the very bottom of Rachel’s chest freezer – God alone knows how long they’d been in there.  It was actually a blessing to take them!  Thawed in the refrigerator and then sauteed with oil and butter in a large fry pan until slightly browned.  At that point I tossed in a large can of mustard greens (use spinach or any other type of greens) and a can of stewed tomatoes with okra.  Once that was cooked I moved the chicken to one side, added water and some marinated garlic in oil and a box of linguine.  After about 15 minutes the pasta was al dente and dinner was a go.  If you try this, be sure the pasta has enough liquids to absorb.

I was extremely pleased with the way it all turned out and will definitely be making this again.  A one-pot meal that takes very little time.  You could also use any of the cut-up chickens we’ve been seeing on clearance lately – you’d just have to adjust your cooking time.